Thai Pork in Chilli Sauce (Nam Prik Ong)

Another one to use up that red curry paste (that you might have made or bought by now!)

Well, I can't have people making up a job lot of curry paste, and running out of ideas of things to do with it! (There's a Thai green bean and pork dish to come too, and some Thai fish / crab cakes as well, just in case my Thai Red Duck Curry and Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce and Cucumber Salad haven't convinced you to have a go at my recipe for Thai Red Curry Paste...)

This is a dish from Northern Thailand, often sold on the street with deep-fried pork rind – can be eaten as a ‘dip’ with raw vegetables (baby gem lettuce leaves and chicory leaves are good to serve it in/on – would look nice in a small bowl on a large plate surrounded by individual leaves etc. for people to help themselves to), Thai crispy rice cakes, or sticky rice – you could even serve it with (zero or glass/rice) noodles mixed in to make a main meal, or on top of steamed Jasmine or cauliflower rice, for a low carb, light meal. You could substitute minced chicken or turkey if preferred, but pork is traditional. The thai pork in chilli sauce is to the bottom right of the photo, the top left is my Chinese Lettuce Wrapped Pork (or Chicken) – Sung Choy Bao, recipe to follow in the near future.

This will serve four as part of a sharing platter or starter at 129 calories each, or you could serve up to two as a main (257 calories per portion), but it's quite spicy!

Ingredients
200g lean minced pork [328]
½ tbsp coconut/sunflower/groundnut oil (coconut/macadamia/avocado etc. for Paleo diet) [68]
2 garlic cloves, crushed/finely chopped [12]
1 tbsp red curry paste (home-made, see recipe here; or bought and re-calculate the calories if you're counting – add more paste if you like it hotter! 'Thai Taste is a decent brand) [10]
2 large tomatoes, skinned (not essential) and finely chopped [29]
10g palm sugar (or soft brown sugar - substitute raw honey or stevia for Paleo diet) [17]
2 tbsp fish sauce (for Paleo, Red Boat brand) [14]
2 tbsp lemon juice [8]

Method
Heat the oil in a good quality wok or frying pan, and add the garlic and briefly fry (do not burn or it will taste bitter), then add the curry paste and cook out for a couple of minutes until it becomes fragrant.
Add the minced pork and stir-fry over a high heat, breaking it down until cooked through.

Add the chopped tomatoes, fish sauce, lemon juice and sugar (first photo), and continue to cook until the tomatoes break down and the majority of the liquid has evaporated (second photo).

Taste, and add more fish sauce if desired. Serve as a dip with raw vegetables or leaves to scoop it up in, Thai crispy rice cakes, or sticky rice balls as desired (third photo, shown with chicory leaves, but baby gem leaves are sweeter).